Eternal Flame
by Shadray
Summary: ‘‘This boy…has no pulse. No heartbeat. No breathing. And the healing isn't working,’’ Tsunade breathed. ‘‘I'm afraid…Uchiha Sasuke… is dead.’’
1. Default Chapter

"_Eternal Flame_" -by Shadray

Full Summary- "This boy…has no pulse. No heartbeat. No breathing. And the healing isn't working," Tsunade breathed. "I'm afraid…Uchiha Sasuke… _is dead_."

Disclaimer- …hmm…I _wonder_….

Author's Note- Um, people? This would be the first Naruto fic I've written...but I feel that it is...interesting, to say the very least. Or at least, the plotline deepens at a certain point—more than that sad excuse for a summary that I just gave you…. Please give it a chance.

You'll find that—since this is more of a prologue than a real first chapter—Naruto IS the main character of this story, although he doesn't actually show up in this chapter. And you'll notice that I may give a few characters some made-up techniques they didn't have in the anime or manga.

Please be at least remotely kind in your reviews, unless you are particularly interested in having an author track you down, burn down your house and destroy your crops. Oh, and if you request that I read one of your stories (in your review), I shall. n.n;

Please read, and do enjoy.

* * *

Eternal FlameChapter One (Prologue): _...Death._

A dark, hooded figure stood in the midst of the shadows, hidden from view due to the obscurity of the night. The figure did not move for a curiously long time, seemingly waiting for its chance to scurry away at the perfect moment.

But as time moved steadily past, the figure's growing impatience caused it to jolt from its safe position in the darkness and dash into the woods, where it was, of course, quite possible for someone to overhear the rustling of the leaves as the figure leaped from tree to tree, attempting to reach its destination.

The hooded figure rocketed through the forest like a bullet, not daring to make even the slightest rustling noise as he leapt from branch to branch. The moonlight emerging from the spherical, potholed object in the sky was its only source of light, but it was far more than enough for the figure to see with.

The journey through the forest continued in an uneventful—yet highly cautious—manner for such a long time that it was only getting repetitive, and the hooded being soon regretted its decision to leave so late at night. If it had left earlier, perhaps that damn Uchiha would—

The figure froze.

There had been a rustling of leaves below him—and there was certainly no breeze blowing through here, and no visible animals. _Someone was here._

But no…. The hooded being had no time to waste—and if someone had seen him, surely they would have made some other noise other than a rustling of leaves, such as a gasp or a shriek—or _something_. Besides, who would be here so late at night?

And with this in mind, the dark thing hurdled to the next tree branch, on which it landed silently—

And froze once more.

_Now what was _that_ noise?_

It was not a rustle this time. No—it was—

"Hyah! Hu! Hah!"

—the sound of a girl's battle cries, accompanied by a few whacking noises that seemed to echo throughout the forest. Apparently, someone was training here. Alone. In the middle of the night.

The fool.

The dark, hooded being descended just low enough to catch a quick glimpse of the girl. It was admittedly difficult to see all the details in the darkness, but the girl seemed to have short, indigo-colored hair and strange, bottomless eyes… Eyes that—

"_What…?!_" he mumbled to himself inaudibly. "Is that—?"

The girl suddenly whipped around, staring straight in his direction.

"Wh- Who's there?" she stuttered uncertainly, narrowing her eyes to see better.

The figure did not move an inch, knowing very well that there was no way that girl could see him in the darkness, for his cloak was camouflaged to blend in with both the tree behind him _and_ the pitch-black atmosphere.

Still, the girl did not turn away: she continued to stare directly at the spot where the figure lurked, as if she could really see him.

And that's when the hooded figure saw it—

The veins protruding out from her eyes…the light purple color of her bottomless pupils… _A member of the Hyuuga clan._ The being in the hooded cloak knew she was utilizing her Byakugan to see him perfectly in the pitch-black darkness—which was not good. He had been sighted.

_Damn it._

The Hyuuga girl squinted a little more, as if focusing her Byakugan and seeing right through his cloak. The figure in the cloak stared at her, eyes widened, knowing she would realize who he was in a matter of seconds; there was no choice but to kill her _now_, before she told anyone of…

—_Too late._

The girl's eyes had widened dramatically and she was now gasping so loudly that one would think she had been holding her breath for minutes. The girl began to take quick, short intakes of breath, finally realizing who the hooded being lurking in the shadows was. "It- It's you…isn't it?!" she breathed, shocked. "It's you…Sasuke-kun…!"

"Mmph." The hooded figure jumped down to the ground to look her in the eye, and violently ripped off the cloak from his body. "Yes," he said. "It's me—Hyuuga Hinata."

He seemed much more mature than when he had left the village of Konoha so many years ago. His black hair now extended past his shoulders, and his skin seemed much paler than before. The young man's eyes sent a chill down Hinata's spine, and the dark attire he wore made him seem a great deal more—secretive and peculiar.

Of course, during the time that had passed since Sasuke's sudden leave from Konoha, Hinata had seemingly changed a great deal as well. Her indigo hair was now past shoulder length, her eyes were deeper and more intense, and the young woman was now reasonably taller—all signs of her physical maturity. But she had not become so strong that she couldn't hide the obvious look of shock from her face.

She merely stared at him, surprised at his sudden unexpected appearance. Hinata furrowed her eyebrows a bit, wondering just he was up to, lurking in the woods so late at night. The only reason _she_ was out here herself was for her daily midnight training; for the past two years she had been getting up at this time to venture outside and train by herself, when no one would look or criticize her newly found style of fighting.

"I—"

She stopped; there was something amiss with the Sasuke she had once met. She had never known him well, but she had seen him at the Chuunin Exams so long ago, and…he didn't look the same— There was something in his eyes…something _wrong_. Something—malicious. _He's…changed…_ Hinata thought._ He's—_

"Yes?" The Uchiha looked down at her and grimaced. "What's _wrong_, girl?"

"S- Sasuke-kun…" She swallowed, not knowing what to say. "Naruto-kun… The village… _Konoha_ has been looking for you—! We've been trying to save…" Her voice trailed off, as her mind thought of the one person she knew who would be most delighted to see the young man in front of her. _Naruto… _She pictured his bright blue eyes and the broad smile he always used to have on his face, and it calmed her a bit.

"Trying to save me? Is that it? Is _that_ what Konoha has been doing?" Sasuke said quietly. "Well—I'm afraid I've been doing _much more_." His eyes flashed, and a horrible wicked grin spread across the Uchiha's face.

"And…wh-what is that?" Hinata questioned, even quieter, trying to get him to explain what he'd been up to for the past 3 years.

"Obtaining strength—and searching for my brother." He harrumped, and muttered under his breath, "…feh.."

Hinata looked him up and down, still frightened but attempting to conceal it.

"Are- Are you trying to find him _now_? To…fight him?" she asked quietly, knowing she sounded ridiculous for questioning him like this. But she didn't care; she was now trying to buy time, because she knew very well that she wouldn't get out of this without a fight. _Surely…I won't be a match for him, if he attacks… _

But she continued thinking of Naruto—and as she did, her confidence grew. She could easily remember his saying: '_…because that's my way of the ninja!'_

"Hmph. I wouldn't tell you for anything," Sasuke replied simply. "I hardly even know you."

"Sasu ke-kun…"

"No one is supposed to know I'm here out here. This will have to be your end." And with that, he whipped out a large number of kunai from seemingly nowhere and flung them all out in front of him; the weapons soared through the air, about to reach Hinata's face, when—

Hinata performed a rapid series of hand movements and mumbled a few words under her breath, and a narrow blue beam of chakra protruded from her hand. The Hyuuga clan member swiped her hands through the air so quickly they looked like a mere blur—and in seconds, all the kunai had been sliced into bits and were nothing but chunks of metal in a heap on the ground.

Hinata looked up at the peculiar Uchiha in front of her and smiled innocently, now gaining all of her confidence. "…is that _all?_"

He smirked. "I see you've strengthened. That was only a test to see how quickly I'll be able to kill you," he muttered. "I'll give it—one minute, at the most."

Saying nothing more, the mysterious ninja performed a series of hand movements and said, "_Fukashi_ _no_ _jutsu_!" And he vanished seemingly into thin air.

Hinata looked around. "_Byakugan!_" She shook her head and concentrated, closing her eyes tightly, and when she opened them again there were veins protruding from them.

The young woman looked left and right, concentrating hard on any movement that might be occurring around her. And—

There it was. On the ground, a twig snapped; that must have been where Sasuke was standing. Hinata leapt forward and kicked the air where she suspected he may have been located—but her leg made contact with nothing but oxygen.

Sasuke's manic laughter echoed through the forest.

And, while Hinata continued looking about, a strong hand from behind whacked her and she flew through the air like a rag doll, where she collided into a broad tree. The young woman fell to the floor, trickles of blood running down her face. For a while she didn't move, making no indication that she planned to get up; Sasuke merely watched with what looked horribly like pleasure.

_'…because that's my way of the ninja!' _Naruto had said, long ago.

Hinata still remembered it clearly how the blonde ninja had always said that when it looked like he might give up. And Hinata and always admired it. _I…definitely won't give up _now. _I…must bring him back to Konoha, or…_

Leaving the sentence unfinished, the girl rose to her feet—and there was a loud cracklingnoise as she focused her _Byakugan_ even more, to the point where she could keep a good eye on the enemy in front of her, no matter what speed he was moving at. Then, quite audibly, the young woman said, "Now…it's my turn…"

She leapt forward and flung her hands out as if to perform a karate chop to Sasuke's neck—but the Uchiha easily parried the attack. Having anticipated this parry from the beginning, she continued striking at him at a quicker and quicker pace, focusing her _Byakugan_ enough to aim for his internal organs. Sasuke continually blocked each strike at first—but soon the attacks were coming at him so unbelievably rapidly that Hinata's hand movements were merely a huge blur, and _his_ hand movements were becoming a blur as well as he continued blocking as many strikes as possible.

"_KYY-AAH!" _

Hinata struck him straight in the chest with a powerful blow, and the Uchiha flew backwards and slammed into the ground.

She was panting like a dog that had just run for miles, but she did not move from her stance, for the black-haired young man in front of her was rising to his feet, smirking. "Enough play; you're a waste of my time," he spat. "All this time, I didn't even need to use the curse seal, _or_ the _Sharingan_."

And with that he zoomed past Hinata at top speed and stopped when he was standing directly behind her. Before she would whip around, the corrupt _shinobi _went through a series of hand motions, and exhaled a breath of bright red flame that engulfed the young woman in a tall, thick sheet of fire.

And just like that, he left her to burn.

_->->-_

Hyuuga Hinata waited until she could wait no longer, hoping that Sasuke had left by now, and then allowed the water clone she had made of herself to revert back to its original form: a puddle of water.

…_good thing it rained earlier today,_ she thought. _The fates were with me…_

She'd fooled him.

The young woman waited a bit longer to make sure she would not run into Sasuke again, and then she rushed back to Konoha: She had dire news to tell.

_->->-_

"Sorry, kid—but Hokage-sama's busy with loads of paperwork at the moment, and does not wish to be bothered. Besides, it's past one in the morning; what are you doing here? ….Go to sleep and come back in the morning."

"No…! It's urgent, _please!_"

"I'm sorry. _No._"

Hinata sighed. "Sir…but you don't understand… It's very pressing news, and if—"

"Here. I'll make a deal with you." The man guarding the door smirked. "If you bring me back seven orders of ramen, I'll _think_ about _thinking_ about _thinking_ about it. Alright—?"

BAM.

Just then, the door he was guarding slammed open, and a frustrated-looking blond woman came charging out, knocking the guard over and stepping all over him in her mad attempt to exit the building.

"Finally… fresh AIR!" she gasped, inhaling audibly through her nose. "Away from all those damn stacks of paperwork and from Shizune's _constant_, NONSTOP…_ANNOYING AS HELL…._" She suddenly stopped talking, grabbed a great chunk of hair from her head and "_RRRIIPPP_"-ed it out, while foaming at the mouth as if she should have been carried away by a group of men in white coats—and then abruptly stopped when she noticed Hinata and the guard staring at her. "Oh. Um…. Good evening."

"On second thought… You do what you what, little girl," the guard said to Hinata, as he slowly innnnnnched away from the woman and fled, not daring to look back.

"Hokage-sama..." Hinata exclaimed, glad that Tsunade had chosen this exact moment to come out and get some fresh air…even if it _was_ so late at night.

"Well, well. If it's not Hyuuga Hinata," Tsunade greeted, smiling. Then, the smile faded a bit as she said, "…oh, you weren't trying to get inside, were you? What are you doing here at this time of—"

"Trying to contact you…" she interrupted desperately. "Something horrible is happening…"

The Fifth furrowed her brow. "Hm? What is it?"

"It's...Uchiha Sasuke. I…saw him in the—"

The smile on the Fifth's face vanished so quickly that one would have thought she'd just learned her father died. "You say you did… _what_?"

"He was in the forest, far out… and—and I—" The girl quickly explained the situation, and what had happened as fast as possible.

The Hokage's face was pale. "Oh, no… _Damn _it… Did he at least say where we was going?"

Hinata thought back, and recalled something he had said. "Well…after he left, I waited to see which direction he would go…and it seemed that he was going to the north, far edge of the forest. And he said something…something about searching for his 'brother'…"

The Hokage muttered a rather foul word under her breath that Hinata was quite sure her mother would not approve of, and narrowed her eyes at the ground. Hinata got the impression that she was thinking very rapidly.

"Damn it… This—is _not_ good…."

_->->-_

"Oh…hee, hee, hee—!" Jiraiya wolf-whistled quietly and snickered pleasurably at the sight of the three half-naked women bathing in the spring. Well, it _was_ more to add to his collection of perverted pictures of sexy women—so he was quite happy, and in an unusually good mood.

"Katie...! Stop it!" one of the girls snapped in the spring, splashing another one irritably with some of the water.

"Ugh! You wet my hair, you _whore_!" the girl named Katie snapped back, slapping the other girl powerfully across the face and leaving a visible red mark on her cheek.

"_ASS!" _the girl screamed, grabbing Katie by the hair and flinging her around.

Seconds later, the two were in a massively pitiful catfight, and were clawing out each others' eyes, ripping out each others' breasts, and munching on each others' arms, while the remaining girl merely watched and sighed.

Jiraiya excitedly tape-recorded the whole thing, grinning broadly, and attempting to stop _little_ Jiraiya from showing up, if you know what I mean. "Oooooh…" He snickered some more, still watching the two slender, wet girls attack each other like wild fiends, and he did not stop until something came out from behind him, whacked him in the back of the head, and screamed, "JIRAIYA, YOU IDIOT! STOP TAPING PERVERTED PORNOS, AND GET YOUR PITIFUL ASS OVER HERE _NOW_! THIS IS _SERIOUS_!"

"Eh?!" Rubbing the enormous, throbbing ball protruding from the back of his head, the white-haired sennin arose from his good view of the girls in the spring, sighed, and turned around to face two sweat-dropping women who he recognized immediately as Tsunade and Shizune.

Shizune shook her head with much obvious pity. "Jiraiya-sama… You…are one _sad_ man."

Tsunade nodded, agreeing. "And _give_ me those binoculars!" she cried, ripping the binoculars he'd been using to spy on the girls from him, and chucking it far away. "Have you any idea what's happened, while you were out enjoying yourself spying on females?" she said sharply.

He grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.

"Uhh—well, no…."

"Hinata has just relayed some horrible information to me…" Tsunade explained. "It's about Sasuke. The boy who left the village years ago…."

Jiraiya's sheepish expression was abruptly replaced with one of utter seriousness. "_What_? Sas…uke? You mean, Orochimaru's…? Why would he be turning up so suddenly, with _no_ sign of forewarning?"

"Yes. I'm afraid…he's been sighted. And it seems he's headed for Uchiha Itachi, his brother. The three of us—" The Fifth Hokage gestured to herself, Shizune, and Jiraiya. "—_must_ stop him, at all costs. This is a special S-ranked mission, Jiraiya. If not…"

He nodded, understanding. "…It may be possible for Itachi to easily defeat him and use him…for Akatsuki's own purposes." He paused. "Which would be even worse than Orochimaru's possession of him."

"Exactly." Tsunade scanned the area, and moments later, pointed north. "This is our only clue to where he may be; we'll continue north until something is spotted. Understood?"

The jounin and the other sennin exchanged glances and nodded firmly. "Yes."

_->->-_

_Why would Sasuke be looking for Itachi in _this_ forest? _the Fifth wondered internally, as the group continued traveling through the forest._ What reason in _hell_ would Itachi have to be so close to Konoha…?_

This question had been going through her mind over and over again, ever since she had left from Konoha. But, of course, the question was unanswered, and it was best to leave it alone for now.

She, Shizune, and Jiraiya had been leaping from branch to branch to branch for quite some time now, and had seen nothing peculiar or out of the ordinary.

Shizune looked around. "Tsunade-sama…can we be sure the Hinata girl was right? She could've…"

But Tsunade merely shook her head sharply, indicated for Shizune to silence herself. The man behind them, Jiraiya, had kept to himself the entire time, apparently thinking deeply about something. Tsunade stopped and pointed ahead, at three shady figures lurking in the shadows. It seemed they had finally reached their destination.

"The fool," a dark voice said. "To think he could defeat Uchiha Itachi… even _with_ that seal of his."

"Silence, Kisame," another voice commanded. As Tsunade peered closer, she saw, with not much surprise, that the man speaking was Itachi himself. And, she realized with dismay, Sasuke's body was sprawled out on the ground before him, unmoving and unconscious.

"He _did_ put up a good fight, surprisingly—he's strengthened." Itachi looked down at his leg, which was very bloody and in quite bad shape.

"Yes, he did injure you tremendously…" the man named Kisame agreed. "But we shall return to Akatsuki…and heal it." He paused. "But—what about the Kyuubi brat's mother?"

"What about her? We'll find the bitch _afterwards_."

…

_Did he say…?_

Tsunade turned to face Jiraiya, whose eyes were widened dramatically, as if he too could not believe what he had heard. But they both made no noise, aware of what would occur if Itachi sensed them here.

"Fine. Let's go," Kisame said, and he picked up the Uchiha beside him and left, leaving Sasuke lying sprawled out on the floor.

When the coast was surely clear, the group of three descended to the ground and rushed to aid Sasuke, who still showed no sign of consciousness.

"He seems to be in a critical state," Tsunade said quietly, observing him closely. "_Very_ critical. It may be…" She trailed off, placing her hands to Sasuke's heart. The chakra she used to attempt to heal him emitted a green glow.

Shizune seemed confused, however. "But…didn't that man say something…about searching for Naruto's mother?" But before anyone could respond, she shook her head. "No, he couldn't have…right?"

"I don't know," Jiraiya admitted gravely. "But something is definitely amiss here. Naruto's mother was thought to have died long ago, when the Kyuubi was still here… Why would they want to find her? It makes no sense."

The green glow coming from Tsunade's chakra suddenly disappeared.

"What's wrong, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune queried, furrowing her brow.

She said nothing for a moment. Then, the woman slowly turned to face the other two shinobi. "It seems," she said, "that Naruto's mother is not the only person who seems to be dead here…"

"Hm? What…do you mean?"

"I mean… this boy…has no pulse. No heartbeat. No breathing. And the healing isn't working," she breathed, gesturing to the unconscious young man sprawled out helplessly on the floor before them. "I'm afraid…Uchiha Sasuke… _is dead_."

_->-_

To Be Continued


	2. Chapter Two

Note- Thanks for the reviews!

Um… I already know how this story will end, but I'm not sure how it will compare to the manga/anime… Therefore, I need to finish this fic before the manga finishes; that way I can have an excuse when numerous people come after me with bloody chiansaws for creating a story that differs too much from the real thing.

And FYI, the previous chapter took place two years after Sasuke originally left Konoha, and the rest of the chapters take place a year after _that_. Meaning, a year has passed since Tsunade said, "Uchiha Sasuke...is dead," and now _three_ years have passed since Sasuke originally went to Orochimaru.

Read, enjoy, and please: don't die. It's not healthy.

* * *

_Eternal Flame_

Chapter Two: …And _Life._

A young shinobi stood proudly on the ceiling of the tallest building in Konoha, overlooking his hometown and the several people sauntering cheerfully along its streets: the buoyant children laughing and playing, the groups of adults conversing amiably amongst themselves, the men and women taking their leisure afternoon strolls around the block…. And as the young man surveyed the village in which he had matured, all these sudden memories came flooding back like a rapid slideshow, flashing brief pictures of the past in his brain. It was as if he were reliving a memory from his younger years—the days of his amateur shinobi lessons, his experiences with Team Seven, and his seemingly pointless missions…

The towering mountain of the previous and current Hokages was visible at the far end of the small village. The First, Second, Third, Fourth, and now the Fifth all stared invitingly at him, as if welcoming the young man unto their home as the golden sunlight shone down on the village, brightening the mood of its inhabitants. However, the newer aspects of the village which he had never known—changes—new renovations that were unknown to him—surprised him a bit; he had never suspected his hometown to change so.

It was evident from the excessive number of people out on the streets that there were a significantly higher number of residents in the town than before, and interestingly, all of the residents seemed to be in a much more cheerful mood than they had used to be. In the past, there had always been a small element of tentativeness and caution when one person spoke with another, due to the malicious events going on in the surrounding villages—but, as the young man gazed interestedly at the townsfolk, he did not see this caution.

Instead, it was as though a good amount of the surrounding evil in the world had faded, allowing people to dump their wariness and adopt a more outgoing behavior. He had detached himself from the village—and, consequentially, the rest of the world—for three years to train, and now, it seemed, things had calmed down a bit.

The young man's lips curled into a pleased smile as he took in all of the surroundings of the place he had once known and loved. It was a pleasant surprise, being able to gaze at the village and feel so content about the obvious changes it had undergone. He folded his arms with satisfaction.

He could now call himself proud to be of Konoha.

A much older man—white-haired, with aged features—approached the young shinobi, surveying the content look on his apprentice's face. A breeze blew through the atmosphere and produced a whistling noise and a ruffling sound as it made contact with their apparel, while the two men stood, proudly looming over the entire village as through they owned it themselves.

"Ready, Naruto?" the man said, grinning and placing a hand on the sixteen-year-old's shoulder.

The blonde, shorthaired boy nodded firmly, determinedly pointing down at the village in an overly heroic manner, and shouted, "_Konoha_... _I'm_ _back!_"

_->->-_

_It may have changed a bit but…it's no different than before! _Naruto anxiously leapt from the building and landed easily on solid ground, followed by his sensei, who was taking great interest in watching Naruto's reaction to his old village. "This whole place…it's _great_!"

Jiraiya smirked, his great white hair billowing in the wind. "You really have matured, haven't you, Naruto?"

But the shinobi was not listening, as was plainly obvious when he began looking left to right frantically, shouting, "What to do first?! We gotta find Kakashi-sensei, see Sakura-chan, go to Ichiraku Ramen… Oh, and I almost forgot about visiting the ugly old hag, Granny Tsunade!! _There's too much to be done!_" He began hysterically babbling on like an incoherent idiot, the excitement of the situation becoming too much for him.

"… Actually…nevermind," Jiraiya muttered, reminding himself not to publicly spend too much time with Naruto, lest the apprentice unknowingly repel any attractive women from him.

But he did not receive a chance to slyly ditch his apprentice, for the sound of a woman's shoes clicking as they made contact with the ground resonated into his ears; Naruto's incoherent babbling subsided so that he could peer around his sensei's enormous spiky rug of hair to gawk at the woman approaching.

She was clothed in a seemingly comfortable green robe, and her lengthy golden hair perfectly framed her pale face. "Well, well, well," the woman grinned, shaking her head. "I _thought_ I saw you two posing on top of that building…"

"Granny Tsunade!"

Naruto beamed, dashed forward and…tentatively poked her face multiple times with his index finger. "Waaaait… You are '_Granny'_ Tsunade, right?"

Her grin abruptly contorted into a massive grimace. "_Yes_, why _wouldn't_ I be?" the Hokage demanded, folding her arms.

Shizune rounded the corner, smiling as if she had heard the beginning of the conversation. "Same old Naruto," she said, shaking her head. "Don't worry," she added, "Tsunade-sama hasn't changed either…"

Naruto stared, confused, at her: the Fifth Hokage _he_ knew was an artificially young, old woman with small wrinkles on her face that were quite noticeable if one managed to take a close enough look at them without being punched by Tsunade. However, _this_ Fifth Hokage looked even younger than before, as if she had recently taken a dive into an ocean of facial makeup. "Eh?! You…look…" He cut himself off at the threatening look on Tsunade's face.

"Young? Beautiful? Stunning?" she responded brisky. "Why, thank you." She then turned to Jiraiya, the smile returning onto her features. "So how've things been for you two? We've missed you for the past few years!"

"Nothing's different," the sennin replied, grinning. Then, he leaned closer to her and Shizune and added, "Been training Naruto all this time outside of the village."

"He looks so mature!" Shizune exclaimed, stunned.

Naruto beamed. "I guess I am! Thanks, Shizune-san!" He pumped a fist into the air proudly, turning to face his sensei. "Isn't that right…," he grinned maliciously, "Ero-sennin?"

The elder man slowly pivoted his head to face the young shinobi and shouted, "HAVEN'T YOU GROWN OUT OF THAT YET?"

"Apparently, the boy has matured more than the _man_," the Hokage put in, chuckling to herself good-naturedly. This comment resulted in Jiraiya narrowing his eyes and opening his mouth to say something in response, when Naruto suddenly shouted an incoherent exclamation and ran off.

The three adults stared after him as he randomly kicked up dirt and sped off, presumably, to greet someone he had just sighted.

"… strange one, he is," Jiraiya muttered. _Probably off looking for Sakura…_ It was a peculiar observation, but he had noticed that the boy had had an interesting connection with Sakura ever since the Chuunin Exams so long ago. When Jiraiya had mentioned their returning to Konoha, Naruto's first question was whether they would have a chance to see "Sakura-chan," and his second question was whether Ichiraku Ramen was still in business.

The Fifth Hokage nodded, agreeing, and said, "Jiraiya…? Please…don't mind my candor, but…" She looked at him in the eye, a sudden look of gravity appearing. "…during your time away from Konoha, did you manage to come across any valuable information on Akatsuki?"

His features firmed, and for a while he merely stood still as if reflecting on his answer. Then, he shook his head. "Unfortunately…" He frowned heavily. "…no."

There was a pause in which Tsunade glanced at the younger woman beside her.

"Shizune? Could you please…give us a moment?"

The Hokage's assistant's eyes darted back and forth between the two sennins multiple times, as if wondering what in the world the Fifth was preparing to converse with him about. Still, she nodded firmly and did not linger much longer; she left the two sennin standing there alone, staring each other down in an exceptionally grave manner. "I wonder," she mumbled to herself as she ambled away, "what could be so important…?"

* * *

_Where is she…?!_

Sakura sprinted up and down the streets of the village frantically; various passersby stared after her, wondering what the hell was wrong with her, and seemingly debating whether or not she had gone insane. But the pink-haired young woman paid them no mind as she darted from one busy street to the next, searching recklessly for the Hokage.

Where had that woman gone? One minute she had been in her office, and the next…

Sakura's hair blew violently in her face as she jerked around the corner and sprinted down the road. _If Tsunade-sensei doesn't show up… _She swallowed. _…she'll never know about Minori-san…_

_And if she doesn't know about Minori-san…_

But she didn't allow herself to complete the daunting sentence; instead, she sent a surge of chakra to her legs to give her an extra burst of speed, and—

_SMACK._

She and two other people collided forcefully into each other, and all three ended up sprawled out on the ground.

"Oh…sorry, I…" But she didn't have time to apologize; the girl was about to cut her apology short and resume sprinting frantically in search of Tsunade, when someone nearby called her name. She looked left and right, but when she didn't see the person who had called, she rolled her eyes. Was there time for such petty games?

"Sakura-chaaaaaaaaan…" the voice groaned again. "That hurt…!"

"What _is_ it, Naruto?! What do you want?" she snapped, now recognizing the voice, and irritably looking downward to realize that one of the people she had run into was the blonde ninja she had befriended three years ago.

There was a pause. Then—

"Wait…" Sakura quickly helped the boy, who was now twitching and sputtering on the ground, to his feet, where it took him a moment to regain his balance. "_Naruto!_" She wrapped her arms tightly around him, who coughed and choked.

When she had finished violently squeezing the life out of him, Naruto grinned in return. "Sakura-chan! How've you-"

But he stopped and stared at his companion's matured figure: She was now roundly sixteen years old, as was he, and she looked more like a lady than ever before. Her short, pink-colored hair flowed with the wind as she stood there, her eyes glistening. Sakura smiled cutely and looked up at him. "How do I look?"

There was a moment when he merely gawked in silence. Then, he replied, "Amazing! You've changed!"

"I bet you have too, Naruto," Sakura giggled, observing him with interest. "You're so much more…"

"Awesome?"

"No…"

"Cool?"

"Not quite…"

"Sexy?" Grinning hopefully, Naruto performed his infamous Sexy Jutsu, abruptly morphing into a female with such accurate curves and such an innocent smile that almost every male in the vicinity gawked and fell over with a loud THWACK sound.

"HECK NO!" Sakura bellowed, and a loud smacking noise resounding throughout the area as the palm of her hand made contact with his cheek. "I take it back! There's nothing ABOUT you that's changed!"

She glared down at the cringing Naruto on the floor.

"Nothing about whom?"

Naruto pivoted his aching head to face the person who had uttered this, and, to his surprise, four familiar faces stared incredulously back at him: Shikamaru, Lee, Neji, and Hinata. A number of wild gasps and exclamations immediately ensued, and the other person that Sakura had collided into groaned and picked himself up from the ground; he was immediately recognized as Konohamaru. One more gasp occurred, soon followed by another exclamation.

"Well, would you look at that… Hey, Naruto!" Shikamaru grinned, both hands in his pockets. "I was starting to think you had died in your training."

Lee brightened dramatically and beamed, the usual sparkle glistening in his perfect set of white teeth. "Our old fellow shinobi has returned! WE MAY NOW HOST A REUNION OF JUBILANCE!"

He was stared at.

Shikamaru muttered something under his breath sounding like "troublesome…"

Neji merely nodded and smiled politely, and Hinata blushed and turned a bright shade of crimson at her comrade's reappearance. She muttered, "Naruto-kun…" and smiled in a remarkably sheepish manner.

He was stared at for a while, until Konohamaru also beamed, jumped up, and said, "Oi, Naruto-kun!"

"Konohamaru!! How ya been?"

His grin was replaced with a smirk. "I've been practicing a _verrry _powerful jutsu so I could rival _you_!" he exclaimed. "Wanna see?" Without waiting for an answer the child performed the correct seals and instantaneously POOF!ed into a slim, curvy, nude female with small puffs of clouds covering her more enticing features.

Sakura growled and menacingly turned to glare at Naruto; the others merely watched silently, interested. "Naruto…" she said slowly. "…WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN TEACHING THESE INNOCENT ADOLESCENTS?!"

He ended up twitching on the ground after the irritated young woman whacked him with amazing force. "Try teaching THAT to small children!" she cried, towering over him.

The blonde shinobi quickly regained his stature, took in a deep breath—and hurriedly sped away, closely followed by Sakura, who was threateningly brandishing a high heel as she chased him around the entire village.

Lee swooned, watching the high-speed chase with binoculars. "She's even more gorgeous when she's angry!"

Shikamaru sighed, shaking his head with obvious pity. "He's just returned, and already he's being troublesome…"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tsunade sighed. "Jiraiya…. You say you _haven't _heard anything?" she said, eyeing him warily. The man nodded. "Then, tell me…in all this time, have you informed your apprentice of anything that's been impending lately?"

He grinned sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. "Naruto? Why, of course I have!" he said awkwardly.

There was a silence. Then, the Fifth narrowed her eyes and dryly responded, "…you haven't, have you."

"Nope."

"Then I presume he also knows nothing of Sasuke?"

Jiraiya opened his mouth to reply to this, but decided to approach the answer in a more subtle manner. "I've been training him rigorously for the past three years because I feared that Akatsuki would be making its move some time soon; I had no opportunity to inform him of Sasuke, or anything else." He shook his head. "You know him, he would…stop his training and run off or something. He may have changed, but one's personality and mindset never really changes."

She sighed and, shaking her head sadly, began to walk away.

Before she walked far, she pivoted her head and said, "That's fine…but don't forget what will occur once he learns you've been keeping this from him for a year. I imagine he'll go after Itachi himself."

Jiraiya watched as the Hokage turned back around, casually put her hands in both pockets, and disappeared from view.

* * *

"Sakura-chan… What's new with Konoha?"

Naruto and his fellow Team 7 companion sat at Ichiraku Ramen, consuming massive amounts of ramen in such a wild manner that it drew attention from all the way on the other side of the street. Or, rather, _Naruto_ was doing this; Sakura merely watched him with a look of concern, as if wondering where it all went. After having said goodbye to Konohamu, Shikamaru, and the others, the two of them had decided to go to the restaurant.

By this time Sakura had forgotten all about her need to inform the Hokage about Minori.

"Naruto…" she said, looking at the blonde ninja, who quirked an eyebrow.

But she shook her head. "There's nothing new with Konoha," she said, although it was certainly a lie, and the girl new it perfectly well.

He slurped down a ramen noodle. "Then, where have you been for the past year? Ero-sennin said you'd left Konoha…" He eyed her. "…although I doubt it was for training. You look weak." And when she glared at him, he quickly waved his hands defensively and exclaimed, "Sakura-chan! Kidding!!"

She looked down at her food, and suddenly did not feel very much like eating; the girl put down her two chopsticks, staring into the noodles. _Then…he doesn't know… _she thought, frowning noticeably.

"… Are you going to eat that?"

Without waiting for an answer, the shinobi snatched the ramen from out in front of her and began devouring it himself, leaving no room for conversation.

Sakura rested her head on her hands and sighed. What she had learned a year ago… About Sasuke's death…. After it had been announced, Tsunade assigned a certain mission for her and approximately ten other shinobi to complete; unfortunately they had all returned unsuccessful, which it seemed that Tsunade had been expecting all along. Still, Sakura kept at it; she was now the only ninja still trying to complete the mission that had been assigned to her the year before—and interestingly, Tsunade did not object to it, but actually seemed to encourage it.

She had finally completed the mission this morning, and had found such astounding information on the matter at hand that she had no choice but to relay it to Tsunade immediately.

_That _was when Naruto arrived.

She had been distracted. Or, more accurately, she couldn't bring herself to tell him the news she had recently learned; instead, the girl had been entertaining him to prolong the inevitable. She knew she would have to tell him…for no one else would.

"Uh… Naruto…" she said tentatively, staring downward in an unfathomable manner.

"Eh?" He looked up, a single noodle of ramen stuck to his lip.

"I haven't told you this, and didn't want you to know yet, but…" She sighed, and forced herself to look him in the eye. "…there was a serious reason why I left Konoha last year." She looked at his baffled expression, and cleared her throat. "I…was on a mission…to find your mother, Uzumaki Minori.

"There was a rumor that she…was still alive and well, Naruto," she continued, forcing herself to look away from him; she couldn't bear to see his reaction. "And… Hokage-sama believes that…Uchiha Itachi has been out to find her for Akatsuki's own purposes."

Finally, the last sentence of her confession was uttered: "And this morning… I found her… I found your mother, Naruto." She paused. "_Alive_."

There was an elongated silence during which Sakura turned the other way. The blonde shinobi beside her, however, was neither screaming nor fainting. Instead, he merely stared at her incredulously.

"EH?!"

->->-

Author's Note- Thanks for reading, please review, and happy holidays to everyone. n.n;


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